


Unintended Progeny

by Denebola_Leo



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Big surprises in a little package, Escaping a scientist and a tank, Family, Feel-good, Gen, Mad Scientists, Poor Nanaki, Running for freedom, Science Experiment on the loose, She's just a lost little kid, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, and she looks a bit shocking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 11:19:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14715029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Denebola_Leo/pseuds/Denebola_Leo
Summary: What if Hojo had been successful, one way or another? What if he had succeeded in creating a hybrid of Cetra and Guardian? What if that creature was spirited away to some place far from Shinra, only to be a test subject after all?





	Unintended Progeny

"Pwease no hurt."

The scientist chuckled dismissively at her as he tapped his pen on his clipboard. "It was just a little pinch, Subject Five. You've been through more than that."

She sniffled. All she wanted to do was leave this strange white place, this place that was all she knew. Sometimes she would get glimpses of the place outside the door, and it had a big, blue ceiling that was sometimes black. There was green things the scientist called "trees" or "grass" when she asked about them.

At least he humored her questions.

Her whole life was this place. Her home was a glass tank in the corner of the room. Sometimes the scientist would take her out and let her run around the room, scribbling on his clipboard as she let out pent up energy. Those days were fewer than when she was younger. She couldn't run as much anymore, her size making her running spurts shorter.

She had dreams of running outside, and sometimes a two-legs in a pink dress would be there too. She had green eyes like she did, and she was surrounded by white and yellow things the two-legs called 'flowers'. She wasn't sure why, but that two-legs made her feel safe and content. She loved those dreams.

The scientist ushered her back into her tank, then put his clipboard and pen down on the old table by the wall. "That's enough testing for today," he said. "I'll be back tomorrow for more." The middle aged scientist pushed the button on the tank, shutting it. She noticed it wasn't closed quite right, as if it was wearing down; she wondered if maybe she could pry it open.

A voice whispered that it would be okay. That voice visited her sometimes, the voice of the dreamy two-legs. It made her feel less lonely. The voice said today was the day she would be free.

He took no notice, too busy fumbling with his notes. The scientist was complacent after so many years. When had she ever had the chance to escape? Either too young or not crafty enough. Not now, not now. He had to go first, or he would pick her up and fix the tank door. The voice urged her to be patient.

The scientist left his table that was full of notes and folders and took his coat from a chair near the door. He put it on, then slid the door open with the press of a button to let himself out. Then he disappeared as the door slid closed again. There was no sound but the hum of the lights above her.

After a minute to make sure he wouldn't return, she pressed the pads of her hands on the glass. It wasn't as firm a lock as it had been before, she noticed. Was it not locked into place? She tried to move it to the side, and it gave a little. Again she moved it as she pressed into the glass, and soon a space opened up between the glass of the door and the metal lining of the tank.

She walked up to the crack, and stuck her fingers through it. She pulled back and slowly it gave way to her. She had to sit and pant for a bit before continuing on, making an opening big enough to slide through. She struggled a little as she pushed her chest out, then tumbled to the floor.

Looking about a moment to take in her situation, she fixed her eyes on the door. The button was too high. Her eyes went to the chair next to the door. She quickly made her way to the chair and pushed it below the buttons, then scrambled onto it. There were two buttons. She pressed one and nothing happened. The other made a soft pinging noise, then the door slid open. She could leave all she knew and go into the unknown, dangerous world.

She ran. She ran as far as she could from that strange, familiar place that smelled of sterility and chemicals. She wanted new and different and free. She didn't want pokes and prods and needles. She wanted the place in her dreams, with the nice two-legs and the flowers.

The air was so different here. All she knew was that strange white room, now she knew of the open place beyond it. It was scary, but being in the glass tank was scarier. So, in the darkness, she ran as fast as she could. First on two legs, then on all fours as a few two-legs shouted and screamed behind her. It was faster like that after the stiffness in her limbs left her. Her body wasn't used to running so fast and long, and it hurt after a time. But she had to keep going.

Two-legs are scary.

After passing a big wall and running through the grassy plains beyond, she found herself in some brush, a place to hide. She collapsed into the dead leaves and dirt, panting heavily. She looked back, the place she left far in the distance. It wasn't just the one room but many others, with doors and windows she had noticed. Maybe the insides of those places were just as scary as the room she was stuck in forever. The strange man didn't stay in that room. He left after a while, then always came back.

Maybe he was looking for her.

She sniffed around out of instinct, and smelled something that made her stomach rumble. Quietly she followed the scent, and it slowly grew stronger as she was led along by her growing need to eat. Trepidation flooded her heart as a glow reached her eyes and a soft crackling sound greeted her ears. She gulped, then peeked through the foilage to spy on the other side.

There was a small fire contained in a shallow pit, and a long lump that looked soft and warm. It was making gentle, rhythmic sounds. It smelled like a two-legs and very faintly of something else that reminded her of the place she left. Maybe it had a scary white room, too. She couldn't help but cringe. To stay or leave? Her stomach grumbled again. The two-legs was sleeping, and she was hungry.

 _'It's okay.'_ That voice again...

She very quietly crept into the space surrounded by grass and bushes and sniffed some more, hoping to find food. There was a big black thing on the other side of the space; it smelled heavy and metallic and made her sneeze, a tiny little noise.

Sniffing some more she pawed at the ground near the fire, finding a small morsel of meat in the dirt. It was the most delicious thing she had ever eaten. She licked her nose after she finished and looked about again. She instinctively stiffened when she finally noticed the snoring had stopped from the two-legs.

The two-legs was on her in an instant, flipping her over and pressing her back against the ground. There was something sharp at her neck and she cried out, part cry and part growl. This two-legs wasn't like the one she was familiar with; this one had blue eyes behind spiky bangs that were boring into her soul. Hard, unnatural, glowing eyes. Evil eyes.

This two-legs was very scary. Why did the voice say it was okay?

She tried to get out from under the two-legs' grip, but its hand was firm on her chest. She squirmed and growled meekly but couldn't get away. Her claws did little to get him off of her. The sharp thing on her neck hurt, but the two-legs raised it a little, keeping the edge off of her skin and fur.

He looked her up and down, his jaw going slack. His glowing eyes again focused their stare into hers and she shuddered. "Pwease, no hurt," she pleaded.

His brows knitted together and he studied her again. His eyes went to her tail. "What the hell...?" Was it the flame on her tail that fascinated him so? His voice was husky from sleep and tinged with a worried confusion. A look of horror crossed his face.

His grip loosened on her and she tensed, the two-legs barely paying any attention to the tension in her body. She flipped over and ran, the two-legs shouting at her to stop before following her barefoot. She heard his foot steps pounding behind her as she tried to run as fast as she could, her breath raspy. She couldn't hide until he stopped chasing her, she had to outlast him.

She stumbled over her feet and yelped, falling face first into the dirt and pebbles and grass and rolling to a stop on her stomach. The two-legs' footfalls were right behind her now, slowing down as he approached. Her breaths quivered harshly as two hands grasped her from above, lifting her up from her resting place. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see those eyes or that sharp object...

She started to sob. "Pwease no hurt."

"Shhh." Her head was resting on the two-legs' shoulder now. He was holding her to him, one hand rubbing circles on her back. "I'm sorry, you scared me when I woke up. No hurt."

She sniffled, her sob more a whimper now as his gentle voice reassured her. "Really?"

He chuckled, a sound she never heard but a few times from the only two-legs she knew. This two-legs' laugh wasn't mocking. "Really. You're safe. I'll keep you safe."

The two-legs took her back to the fire and placed her down. He was staring at her still, and his glowing gaze made her feel uncomfortable. Finally he turned away and rummaged through a bag near the place he slept. A few moments later he turned back to her, his open hand filled with brown things that smelled like food, and a round thing that made sloshing noises. "Hungry?"

She cautiously brought her hand out and grasped one of the dry pieces, quickly withdrawing her hand. He placed the other pieces and the circle by her feet before turning away to look through the knapsack again. She gnawed on the food hungrily, going for another piece and then another. It was so much different than the things she had eaten in the glass tank.

The circle had a knob on it, piquing her interest. She growled as she tried twisting it, the two-legs chuckling as he took it from her and opening it. He handed it back to her. "Water."

She looked down into the container, then tipped it close so she could lap from the hole. The two-legs snorted before returning to the bag. As she finished trying to drink he returned and put a small rectangle of fabric around her shoulders. A blanket? "What's your name?"

Name? She cocked her head. The scientist always called her Subject Five. "Suwbject Fiwve."

His brow lowered. "Where are you from?" he asked gently.

She cowered a little. What if he tried to take her back there? "No more tank," she said, her voice wavering.

The two-legs looked startled, and then his face darkened. "...Tank?"

"No more tank. No go back." She took a step back.

He nodded. "No more tank. Tanks are bad."

She fidgeted, then smiled a little. This two-legs knew tanks were bad! His eyes were scary, but he was nice. She liked nice. "Be with you?" she asked hopefully.

His face softened. "Tonight. Tomorrow...we go somewhere."

"...Where?"

The two-legs bit his lip. "Somewhere safe, far away from tank." He pointed at the soft fabric he had been laying in. "Sleep here, I'll protect you. Okay?"

Cautiously she approached the fabric. It smelled like the two-legs, but his smell was growing on her. He smelled like safety now. She pawed at the fabric a little before laying down, a soft plush thing cradling her head. She had never slept on something so soft. The two-legs put more fabric over her, then gave her shoulder a soft squeeze.

He sat in front of her, back to her. There were tapping noises coming from his front. Again that voice spoke to her; the voice knew the two-legs. The voice reassured her she was right to trust him. She yawned and soon found herself falling fast asleep, exhausted from her first day of freedom. Her last thoughts were about how lucky she had been to be able to escape, and then find a two-legs that didn't like tanks too.

* * *

Cloud couldn't help but glance at the strange creature that stumbled into his camp. Part of him wanted to throw up and another part of him wished to scream. He knew what she was, and it wasn't her fault she existed. She was in a tank...He ran his hand through his blond spikes, shuddering.

He turned his gaze towards the village near Gongaga. Cloud had been on his way back to Edge but decided to camp outside, his gut telling him it was best; the last ferry had surely departed by the time he stopped for the evening, anyway. Everything went normally until he woke up to what he thought was a small monster raiding his camp for food.

Then he noticed the flaming tail and the familiar green eyes as he pinned the creature down, ready to slice through its neck. This was something that he thought wasn't successful. Cloud thought they stopped whatever breeding experiment Hojo was trying. But it looked like it had, in fact, worked. A hybrid of a Cetra and a Cosmo Canyon guardian.

Maybe they had enough DNA samples from both.

It was a strange creature. Not quite human looking, not quite like Nanaki. The fur was in patches here and there, rusty auburn from her hips up to her belly button and on her forearms and lower legs. Her thick mane of hair was a warmer brown, the bangs so much like...hers. The eyes were green and so innocent looking. Her nose wasn't quite one way or another, a cleft separating the upper lip.

There had been fangs and little whiskers. Her hands had stubby fingers crowned with tiny claws and dark pads on the undersides. Cloud assumed her feet looked much the same way underneath. Her tail glowed as bright as Nanaki's, the flame never harming whatever it came in contact with. Her ears were pointed and moved a little by themselves, but not quite like her father's. What skin was there looked pale, much like Aerith's.

Cloud tapped on his phone. He messaged Nanaki after sending a text to Tifa to tell her he would be home late, and that he promised he'd show her why when he got back; he didn't want her to fret. Right now it was almost too much for him. This was Aerith's blood legacy, sleeping soundly right behind him.

He looked back at the little girl, noticing how peaceful she looked. What had she gone through these past five years? Five years...That was about how old she looked, maybe a little younger. Nanaki's kind live a very long time. She would, too.

His phone buzzed and his head snapped back to it. Two messages. Tifa was understanding and hoping he stayed safe, and Nanaki asked what it was that he was to deliver to him. Cloud bit his lip. Should he say it? It would be for the best. He sent his message, giving a short explanation of what happened. After a minute of staring at the phone screen he added some more wood to the campfire. He forgot to tell her his name...tomorrow. Talk of tanks had made him forget.

Cloud sighed heavily. He was going to need to rest if he was going to get them safely to Cosmo Canyon. He took a swig of water from his canteen, wishing it was one of the more potent whiskeys Tifa kept in the bar. He felt terrible for the little science experiment; how could he not? He had become one too at one point in his life. She deserved a chance at life.

Nanaki texted as the warrior brooded, this message one of near disbelief. Are you sure, it asked of Cloud, that this creature is of his own blood? Cloud told him he could see and smell it for himself when he got to Cosmo Canyon. He sighed and looked back at Subject Five. What a horrible name.

He moved towards one end of the sleeping bag and kept the girl by his chest, his arm over her protectively. She didn't stir, evidence of how exhausted she was. Cloud wasn't sure if he would be able to fall asleep, but resting like this was better than nothing.

Did Aerith know? She had to know. Hell, she was probably partially responsible for the meeting between he and her child. Why wouldn't she be? Halfway through the night mental exhaustion overtook his wary thoughts, finally letting him sleep.

* * *

She woke up to the two-legs holding her to his chest, snoring softly again. The darkness was slowly changing to light, a phenomenon she had never witnessed before. She moved the covers and squirmed a little to get out from under her new friend's arm while trying not to wake him, and stood up watching.

It was pretty, she thought. There were so many new colors, reds and oranges and blues and purples. Pink and white. She knew the colors from the scientist, who showed them to her a long time ago. But this was as if they were alive.

She heard shuffling behind her, and turned around. The spiky headed two-legs sat up and rubbed a bleary eye. "Mornin'," he mumbled. His face looked a little different, there was a small amount of scruff on his jaw.

She cocked her head. "Mownin'?" she copied.

He bit his lip. "You don't know what the morning is," he stated. "It's morning. That's the early part of the day."

She nodded, understanding. "Mowning is when the cowors are up there?" She pointed at the colors on the big ceiling. It was still a little scary, how vast it was.

He looked up at them. "That's the dawn. The Sun is about to come up."

"The Sun?"

The two-legs nodded at her, then pointed up. "That's the sky. The sun goes up the sky, then goes back down. It's a bright light."

"Oh." She looked down at the smouldering fire. Dawn, morning, sky and the sun. She looked back at the two-legs; he was doing something to the fire to make it grow, then put a metal container near one side of it. He poured some of his water into it. "Whatchu doin'?"

He looked back up at her. "Makin' coffee. It's grown up wake-up drink."

"But you're already awake!"

Those eerie eyes of his stared at her, and then he smiled. "I need to feel more awake." He fiddled with a little package that he dropped into the container. He looked back up at her and placed a hand on his chest. "My name is Cloud, by the way."

There was that word again, 'name'. She knew it was a label given to others. "Clowd?"

"Yeah." He pointed at a fluffy white thing floating in the brightening sky. "Like that."

She looked up. "That's you, too?"

Cloud chuckled, the sound deep and tired. "No, my name is Cloud, just like those things. They're called clouds. That's a cloud."

She nodded, understanding. He was named after puffy white things? She wanted a name not given by the scientist. Subject Five sounded sad to her. "Can you give me a name?"

He looked up from his coffee making to stare at her slack jawed. "Well, um...What do you want as your name?"

She looked down and played with the dirt by her feet. Then, she looked at the slowly fading colors of the sky. "I like Dawn."

"I'll call you Dawn, then."

Dawn looked back with a smile. "Thanks, Clowd."

Cloud smiled, then rummaged through his knapsack again. Eventually he had a small breakfast of jerky and dried fruit ready for them both. Dawn liked the new food. The dried fruit was sweet and soft, and she licked at her teeth as pieces clung to them. Cloud offered her water again as he sipped his coffee, the two-legs mostly quiet through their meal.

He stood up and began to walk away from camp, and Dawn walked up behind him. Cloud turned and looked down, then shook his head. "Stay here. I'll be right back."

Dawn looked up at him with an inquisitive look. "I wanna come."

Cloud blushed and shook his head. "Um, I gotta go to the bathroom..."

"Bathroom?"

"Yeah..." He rubbed the back of his neck as he looked around. "I gotta pee," he said. He looked rather uncomfortable.

"Oh! I gotta pee too!"

"I-Just wait here, then you can go, too!" He left her at the campsite and came back after a minute. Cloud guided her in a different direction, and let her do her business however girls did it in the wilderness with his back turned before taking her back.

He put something on his shoulder and a long piece of fabric on his hip, then started to put his camp away. Cloud kept the small blanket out for Dawn to wear. As he busied himself she looked around, the sun brightening the world and soon she could see the colors of the grass and brush and little things in the grass that were red and yellow. Were these flowers too?

She also saw someone coming closer. It was the scientist.

He saw her, because he began running towards the campsite. Dawn gasped and ran towards Cloud, and he scooped her up in his arm. "What's wrong?"

"No tank." She hid her face in his shirt.

A few moments passed as he looked the way she ran from. "Is that the guy who kept you in the tank?" She nodded. Cloud put her down and put a hand on her shoulder. "No more tank, Dawn." He walked up to the scientist that was almost at the campsite. Dawn watched from the safety of the big black thing, hiding behind it and twitching her tail.

Cloud will make it all better, said the voice.

The scientist put his hands on his knees, gasping for breath. Cloud came up to meet him, arms crossed. "Can I help you?" he asked coldly.

"I should hope so," was the reply. The scientist stood up straight and pointed at Dawn. "That creature escaped my study lab. While she may be harmless, I need her for my research into the Ancients, you see."

Cloud looked back at those fearful green eyes, then back at the scientist with a glare. "Where did you find her?" he demanded.

The scientist put his hands on his hips. "That's on a need to know basis, sir."

"Yeah? Well I need to know, because I know who her parents are. I knew Hojo was trying to do...this." Cloud motioned towards Dawn.

Startled, the middle-aged man looked back and forth between the two. "Who are you?"

"Doesn't matter. Is someone making more copies of her?" Cloud asked harshly. "She said she was called Subject Five."

The scientist waved his hands in front of him. "It-it's because she was the fifth attempt at hybridization! The others didn't survive!"

"The others didn't survive..." Cloud's face darkened. "What exactly were you doing with her that she was crying out no more tanks, no hurt?" His fists were flexing at his sides.

"Please, if I can study her further we can learn so much more about the Cetra and the creatures of Cosmo Canyon..."

"She's not your test subject anymore!" Cloud roared before punching the scientist in the face, knocking him out. He stood there for a few moments, then turned and walked away. He finished loading up his camp supplies. "We better go, Dawn."

Dawn was gawking at him. He just attacked the scientist that kept her all her life. Cloud still looked angry. "Safe?"

He nodded, then gently picked her up and put her on the black thing. "This is a bike, I call it Fenrir. It goes really fast, so hold on to it." He sat right behind her, sheltering her. His shirt drooped onto her hair a little. The bike rumbled beneath her and she gasped, then it started to move.

Cloud wasn't lying, Fenrir was fast, really fast. The scenery blurred by them and the wind whipped at her face. The bike swayed on turns and eventually the path became smooth. Then the air became drier. The world became red and brown, and the sun was hotter. Where was Cloud taking her?

She was getting hungry and thirsty. Dawn looked up at Cloud. "Thiwsty," she called out.

He looked down, eyes covered by black things and sweat moving over his forehead. Cloud looked back up. "Soon. We're almost there. Just a few more minutes, Dawn."

She looked forward again, noticing a large rocky place that looked a little different than the other rocky places. That must be where he was taking her. She trusted Cloud, the voice said to. She had to trust him.

Soon the bike slowed down and stopped at a large staircase of stone. Cloud dismounted Fenrir and rummaged through a compartment, fishing out his canteen. After letting Dawn have her fill of whatever was left he returned it to the bike and picked her up, climbing the rocky stairs.

He looked up as he cradled Dawn in his arm, the girl nestling her face in his shirt. Nanaki was at the top, his tail swishing anxiously. Cloud waved with his free arm, his face a mask of neutrality and his eyes still covered in his goggles.

Nanaki could see the tension in his shoulders.

"Cloud," Nanaki greeted. As his friend reached the top step he glanced at the creature he held. He felt uneasy; that was a tail like his drooping from under Cloud's hand. The girl moved her head to look down, and those wide green eyes stared at him...

"Hey, Nanaki." Cloud crouched down, Dawn trying to scramble onto his shoulder and away from Nanaki. "It's okay, Dawn. He's my friend."

She let out a little moan as she turned back to look at Nanaki, his amber eye studying her and his nose breathing in her scent as it came closer. She noticed his tail. "I hawve one, too!"

"Yes, you do," Nanaki replied. His expression was pained as he looked back at Cloud. "It's true. I...I don't know what to say."

Cloud patted Nanaki's shoulder. "I don't think there's much to say. She's been through a lot, and...she needs a family."

"I'm only one..." Certainly he had raised bear cubs once, though it ended tragically. What if this ended the same way? He felt helpless.

"You're not alone, Nanaki." Cloud took off his goggles, his blue eyes a mix of anxiety and determination. "Tifa and I'll be there to help. You know that."

Nanaki nodded. He looked at the strange girl, who had climbed off Cloud and was studying his tail. "Where do I even start?"

"You smell kinda like me." Dawn said as she sniffed his fur.

Cloud bit his lip, looking back and forth at the two as Nanaki glanced back at him. "I guess by getting used to her. That's not too hard after the initial shock..."

Nanaki chuckled humorlessly. "You make it seem so easy, Cloud."

"You had a good twelve hours to let it sink in. I sure as hell didn't."

The guardian sighed and looked back at the girl as she studied him. "Dawn. That's her name?"

"She wanted to be named Dawn. I think that's her favorite part of the day," Cloud said quietly.

Nanaki nodded as he turned to Cloud. "Another victim of Hojo...I'll guide her through this world if I can."

Cloud smiled at him. "Guess I'm finally an Uncle. Tifa and the kids are going to want to see her soon."

"I think...Maybe after a month. I'll visit Edge in a month with Dawn."

"I'll make sure everyone knows. After the shock dies down they'll probably be happy that something of Aerith's lives on." Cloud stood up straight.

"Are you?" Nanaki inquired, his head tilted to the side.

Cloud nodded. "I am." He looked down at Dawn, then bent down to grab her up, making her squeal as he hugged her. "I'll see you again soon, okay? Be good until then."

"Where're you going?"

"Home, to my family," Cloud stated.

She looked down, then back up. She knew what a family was, it was a group of people that cared about each other. Like friends, but closer. "Can I be in your family?"

He grinned. "You already are. But, you're Nanaki's family more." Cloud put her back down. "You'll see everyone soon, Dawn."

The voice told her Cloud was telling the truth. She needed to stay with Nanaki for now. Dawn nodded. "Thank you, Clowd."

He took his phone out to take a picture. Tifa would need to see what Dawn looked like. Nanaki stood next to the girl, looking towards the phone with a soulful expression. "It was nothing."

Nanaki's tail swished about. "I'll update you when I can, Cloud. Take care."

"You too, Nanaki. Call us if you need anything." He put his phone back in his pocket.

* * *

"So, today's the day..." Tifa mused.

"Yep." Cloud tapped his fingers on the counter of the bar. They had closed it for the day, their friends waiting for Nanaki and Dawn. They all had decided that since they didn't know exactly when her birthday was, this would be a good enough day to be one for her. It was April, and perhaps that was about the time those madmen were successful in creating her. She would be five.

There was a cake big enough for everyone present, the icing many colors like the dawn the little girl named herself after. There was a small pile of presents on a table waiting for her, Denzel and Marlene putting their badly wrapped gift next to it.

Cid and Barret were sitting at the bar with drinks in hand, talking about this or that, Reeve joining in here and there. Vincent leaned against the wall, quietly watching the door as Yuffie prattled on about Dawn and how she was going to love her gift the most. The ex-Turk glanced her way, let out a quiet snort, then continued watching the door.

They had both visited Cosmo Canyon as soon as news of Dawn reached their phones. Dawn had been extremely wary of Vincent, but Yuffie had her warm up to him quickly. It seemed she loved his long red cloak. Yuffie played with her during her short stay, making her laugh with little practical jokes on a few citizens of Cosmo Canyon. Nanaki had to scold the ninja for that, who blew it off predictably.

There was a scratching noise at the door and Cloud leapt up from his seat to stride towards the entrance. He opened the door and looked down; Nanaki smiled at him before trotting in, followed by Dawn. She beamed up at the warrior. "Clowd!"

"Hey, kiddo," Cloud said as he let her through.

She stopped to look at the group of people that stared back, the tension palpable. She wasn't naked anymore, with a mere blanket to cover her shoulders. A simple brown, sleeveless dress covered her, and little beads were weaved in her hair. A pink ribbon held back her hair in a ponytail. She looked at Nanaki. "Family?"

He chuckled. "Yes."

Yuffie walked up to her. "Happy birthday!"

"Birthday?"

Marlene nodded. "It's the day you were born. You get a party on your birthday!"

"We baked a cake for you, sweetie." Tifa said. Cloud noticed her smile was genuine, but her eyes were a little sad. She was trying to hide how she felt, just like he had to when he first saw Dawn.

Dawn stood there, hesitant. She didn't know the three men that sat on stools in front of her. She didn't know what a cake was, but she would like to find out. Nanaki nudged her. "It's alright, they're all good friends of mine. I trust them."

She put a finger to her lip. "I can trust them, Papa?"

He nodded. Everyone here. They're your family, too."

"Hey, squirt." Cid raised his glass of beer. "You keepin' outta trouble?"

Barret rolled his eyes. "I bet she's gonna be a handful when she gets older. You know how she was..." he ended on a wistful note.

Dawn cocked her head. "Papa says I'm good."

Reeve chuckled. "Papa might be biased," he said with a grin.

Nanaki snorted. "Not as biased as you would think, Reeve."

Tifa brought out the cake to a table as Cloud and Nanaki helped Dawn sit on a booth. Denzel and Marlene sat close to the girl, nonplussed at her appearance. The cake had five candles on it, and it was a swirl of pretty colors. Everyone was singing, some very off-key; after they were finished Denzel told her to make a wish and blow the candles out.

She blew them out but didn't have any wish in her thoughts that hadn't been granted to her already. She was free and had a family, and that was all she wanted.


End file.
